Karen Khachanov: On His Most Successful Masters in Six Years

Transcript

[music] Hello, dear friends. You are on the First and Red channel. This is Yana Chikvitadze. With you, the world's twelfth racket, the Toronto finalist and simply our friend and ambassador of the channel. Cool pasto, cool guy, just a good person. Karen Khachanov. Hello, Karen. Thank you all. Hi Karen, congratulations on a great performance. Tell me, are you more pleased with the tournament or upset by the loss in the final? No, well, I’m definitely happy. Of course, when you play in the final, as they say, you want to eat the cherry on the cake , but at the same time, of course, I realize that in any case, regardless of the result in the final, this is already, uh, a good tournament, a good week. It's not even a week, but we've already had these master classes for two weeks. Therefore, the tournament itself, plus the final itself, was a 100% effort. Therefore, there are no regrets. Of course, we always want to win every match, but at the same time, we take the tournament itself into our own account. It's been almost 7 years between Masters finals. What exactly is it that Toronto is doing better than before? Well, it's hard to say. That is, there is nothing that hasn’t worked before. That is, yes, I didn’t make it to the finals at the Masters . That is, well, there were semi-finals. That year, unfortunately, in Paris, in Bercy, where I was winning, I think in the semi-final I was in control and could have, in fact, won that match if I had n’t gotten injured against Humbert, and also reached the final. So, I do n’t know, it’s hard to say what exactly has changed. That is to say, to be honest, I arrived in Toronto and I did n’t really like the conditions. I joked every day. I was there in the press, when they asked me how I was playing, how the courts were, how the balls were, I said: “I don’t like him.” Yes, we saw that, you were criticizing right from the first day. Well, it seems like I should dislike every tournament I play in, and then I ’ll play better, apparently. Tell us how you prepared for this tournament? Maybe there was some special preparation? I'm prepared, listen, how long have I been after Umbledon? I have n't trained for about seven days, I think. That is, uh, I was a family for a little while. We wanted to fly away and relax, but it didn’t work out. I had to stop by a couple more places on business and fly in. In general, I flew more than I rested. Eh, and flew to Moscow. I also stayed at home there for 9 days. We had a fight with Zhenya Donskoy. Plus, the rest of my team has arrived, that is, my fitness trainer, my physio. Ah, and we all trained together for a week or 8 days. Plus there were a lot of friends, family , acquaintances. That is, to be honest, the schedule was not at all athletic, but, as it turned out, it was apparently better for the head , and this, perhaps, reflected. You said that your family always watches your matches, even if they take place at night. Children join in too. Well, children, children, of course, don’t watch. Uh, only if it's early in the morning and the youngest is already awake, and, that is, it's there, I don't know what time, at 5:30, 6:30 in the morning, you could say. That is, this is when I played very late. And yes, my wife Veronica wakes up, sometimes watches, uh, well, again the team, there, Zhenya Domskaya too, I know that almost everyone followed every match and was constantly in touch with my coach Vedron, who was with me in Toronto. That 's why, apparently, no one slept these past two weeks. The year is long. Tell me, how often do you manage to take your family to tournaments? Mm, not that often, but I mean, this year they were with me in Hong Kong. We wanted to at least celebrate the New Year together, since Christmas wasn’t possible. Then I'll fly to Australia. Here. Then it turns out we were in Rome together. Yes, in Rome, in Geneva and in Halle. This is what these tournaments are like. That is, I don’t know, before the end of the year, maybe they’ll fly to Almaty or somewhere closer. Well, that is to say, not very often. Stan Vavrenko said that it was very difficult for him to live in the same room with a small child. It is important for him to get enough sleep. You have two children. Yes. How do you solve this issue at tournaments? Ah, listen, well, I won’t deceive you, I won’t lie. So it turns out that we live in different rooms with the children. When exactly does the tournament start? That is, firstly, we all don’t always fit into one room. The eldest also needs a separate bed, otherwise there won’t be room for everyone on the folding beds. That's why, uh, in different rooms, uh, it turns out, yes, the younger one gets up a little earlier, the older one already gets up, basically, according to the usual schedule, which is what I get up on. It also depends on the game schedule and matches. Ah, that is, if I play later in the evening, then it’s not a problem, yes, I have to get up later, but if I play earlier, then I can play according to the younger one’s schedule. Here. Tell us a little about your team. You have three tennis coaches. Is there a head coach among them? Well, probably, it is within the scope of my character. Well, that is, I have Vedran, yes, my Croatian coach, who was with me, you could say, from before my junior age and was with me. Uh, he's probably like that, that's why we call him general, because he, yeah, probably stands out a little and takes, well, more of the initiative into his own hands, that is, and again, uh, Zhenya respects him, he's not like someone, that is, everyone still expresses their opinion, everyone adds, uh, what they think is necessary and what they see, but at the same time, to some extent, everyone should be on the same page, right? Otherwise, if everyone pulls the blanket over themselves, then this will also not lead to anything good . Is it important for you that the coach himself can play with you or warm you up before the match? I wouldn't say it's very important. I would say that Zhenya, when we started with him at the end of that year, that is, I wanted, firstly, I think I already said, yes, that, well, we are very good friends, plus he himself had just finished his career there. Oh, and I know, we went to Almaty with him , I won the tournament, and it wasn’t like that was the only reason I wanted to start working with him. That is, I had such an idea, I had such a desire, and everything seemed to be confirmed by itself, you could say. Ah, that is, his vision, probably, of how he is as a person, how he works. And that is, well, I really wanted to add him to my team. Here. Ah, well, that is, the fact that he plays, and the fact that we can right now at big tournaments, at masters, at grand slams, which, yes, last two weeks, if you go, of course, far, then I think that this is also a plus, because you can, firstly, train and do what you think is necessary. Well, that is, first of all, to train for yourself, uh, that is, not when you want to with some player, that can always be arranged, but this way you can work on those things that you need and that you both consider necessary. So it's like a bonus, so to speak. How do you feel about two-week masters? Well, I think it's a bit, um, long, I mean, a bit, you know, I mean, I would probably say 8-9 days would be ideal, not 12. Here, I think we have the Monte Carlo Masters, which lasts 8 days in Paris, in Bercy, I think. That is, it seems to me that this is the optimal time in terms of the number of days, because again you have 2 days of rest, but at the same time you don’t have every second day, every second day is a break. And also all the time, well, keep yourself in tension, in focus for two weeks. Then another grand slam. Well, that is to say, it’s not like there are very many such big tournaments. Now, most players are speaking negatively about the new format. Do you think anything can be changed? Well, it certainly doesn't depend on me. I definitely can't change anything. I can either play them or not play them. Therefore, it probably depends more on the organization, on the ATP and on the sponsors. That is to say , in the end, he who pays the piper calls the tune. We've heard several times recently about the return of the flag to Russian players. Do you have any inside information on this? No, in general it seems to me that this is unrealistic for now. That is, probably, someone in the Council, that is, it is already good that they have started talking about this, yes, that at least some share of , maybe, opportunities and hopes are coming. But it seems to me that we are still far from these realities. US Open is coming soon. Tell us what your expectations are for the tournament? Well, for now we are in the dance hall, that is, I have expectations for the tournament here. Well, first of all, that is, in any case, before the start of even Toronto, I said that to begin with, this change of surface, that is, I would like to play as many matches as possible. In the end, I managed to play the maximum number of matches in this tournament. That's why the expectations are approximately the same. I don’t want to put any barriers on myself, or, on the contrary, any additional pressure on myself, that because I played well there , now I definitely need to do well here and also at the US Open. I mean, yes, great, that's a fact. Ah, but every tournament always turns out differently. It's always a question of adaptation and how you approach each tournament and each opponent, both physically and mentally. So it’s still too early to talk, but we’re in the sanzenat now, so we’ll see how I play here first, and from there I’ll prepare for the final slam. Many people thought that you would withdraw after a good tournament in Toronto and not play in Zantzenata. Why did you make this decision? There was no sleep for 3 hours. It was necessary to fly with the opponent as soon as possible . But they don’t believe in me. Uh, everyone probably wanted me to rest. The old man became two tournaments in a row. Uh, you can't play. Well no, it's true. The only thing I can say is that I had tough matches, especially the last two semi-finals and the final. And that’s precisely where, perhaps, one would like to have a day of rest. And he was no longer there . But in fact, when you, I don’t know, the situation is different every time. That is, I also remember the end of that year, when I played in a row in Almaty, I, it turns out, won, then immediately flew that same night to Vienna and told the coach that I wanted to go to training after the flight, there were about 12, 11 hours, well, with a transfer. That same day, I played every day in a row until the final. Lost in the final. We also flew that same day in the evening and arrived in Paris. On the holy day I trained and played until Saturday. Well, that is to say, I haven’t had any rest at all for how long? 21 days. Well, maybe that’s why I had this injury and it kind of happened, yes, in the end. Don't know. But here again, that is, this is a big tournament, yes, masters. That is, maybe if I had potentially won and thought, well, although in essence there probably wouldn’t be any difference . That is, yes, there are more points, but what is meant is whether you won or lost. That is, your decision to play or not, I think, does not depend very much on this. That is, plus I also understand that there are still 2 weeks left, so even, yes, 2 weeks exactly. So, if I don’t play here, then I’ll stay in America, well, what else can I do? rest first, then train, where, well, that is, you definitely won’t be able to fly home. Well, so why not play? [music] US Open Mixed. How do you feel about this and the new format? And have you tried to sign up with someone? Well, only if you come back, we can play Wildcard. We'll ask. I won't have time, sorry, there's not much time. Not ready. No, I'm not ready. Well, okay, next year. 40 is just right for a comeback, but I don't think it's a bad thing. It seems to me that for an exhibition tournament, well, that is, they are essentially doing this for the spectators, probably more, for some kind of greater media coverage, probably. That is, uh, so plus a training week, uh, everyone will be training, well, the top tennis players, yes, in New York. Accordingly, to play there for 2 days, have a little fun, there, I don’t know, first practice, for example, in the morning among the guys, then play a mix, that is, an additional plus, well, big money, probably, is also that, and, there is some additional interest of your own. There was a lot of criticism, especially from the doubles players. Well, they can be understood to some extent. Well, what would you advise them to do? Well, anyway, in the end, I think they also understand that anyway, well, the main noise and the main interest around tennis is going towards singles. Well, that is to say, it’s not that it’s disrespectful to doubles players, but it’s just the reality and facts that exist. Therefore, uh, all the sponsors pay the main money because of the singles skaters. And that the couple still kind of exists additionally, and they receive big prize money. This is also, well, thanks to single players, so to speak. So, well, I mean, I don’t know, they still announced it as an exhibition tournament, yes, they cancelled, it turns out, well, the traditional mix that was always in the second week of the Grand Slam, and they changed the format, yes, that the tournament itself chooses [music] those guys, those pairs that will be registered and, I think, eight cards, yes, that is, the tournament itself. Therefore, well, what can I say, it’s much more interesting for people, it seems to me. see when the top boys and girls play together, rather than those who end up registering in the regular format for the second week. Oh, it's sad, of course, Zaparnikov. Well, what can I do? Tell me, who do you think is the Open favorite in men's singles? Well, it seems to me that now a lot will depend on it too. Perhaps Sanzenati will be such a show tournament to some extent . Well, that is, to look too, because both Alcaraz and Siner , well, Djokovic doesn’t even play Sinzenati, yes. Alcaraz and Sinr withdrew from Toronto, so it turns out they also had this change of surface after the Wimbledon final. And how would the matches be held here now? Alcaraz didn't play very well that year, either in Sansonite or at the Youth Open. Ah, probably, well, for now it's breaking up a lot. And who is the dark horse? Well, I don’t like to call myself, as they say, not to mention being among the favorites, that is, I can think so, I can feel so, but I don’t want to talk about it. And again, I think that, well, for example, Shelton is the same, that is, there, I don’t know, Shelton, but who else seems to me? I think there might be some kind of rune too. In fact, with him you never know what he's playing. Well, that is, an unreal Theonian can give it away and, well, it will really be hard for many people. Wow, unexpected. Tell me, please, do you watch women's tennis? I'm watching. But the favorite of women's sex. I'm only keeping an eye on Arina. Well, basically, that means she's the favorite, right? I gave her so many compliments, but I see she didn’t want to play the mix with me in the end, when... But you still wanted to play the mix. No, I wasn't against playing the mix, but all the questions are for Karina, that is, she had already agreed with Grigor, and when Grigor got injured, unfortunately, at Wimbledon, they withdrew. So she thought and thought about something, and apparently I didn’t give her enough compliments. Oh well, a couple more TikToks and this is ready for viewing. And who is the dark horse among the girls? Oh, to be honest, I have n't looked at anyone else besides Arin when it comes to girls . No, why did you watch? Well, Anisimova, for example, reached the final, yes, of Umbledon, that is, you could say, quite unexpectedly. Well, that is to say, she, of course, is now playing very good tennis. She's, I don't know, in the top ten now, yes, in my opinion, or close to the top ten. Well, but in the end, Swick also won, although I didn’t expect that she would win, for example, Wmbledon. That is to say, I wouldn't say that this is her best coverage. Mm, if we don’t name the top female tennis players. Well, that is interesting. We need to see, in fact, who it could be. Ah, but you said you watch women's movies, but it turns out you only watch mocharins. No, well, I do n’t remember the rating off the top of my head, who’s ranked, for example, twelfth, fourteenth, so I can’t say that she’s a dark horse. That is to say, I won't call Kokolf a dark horse. Well, she’s not a dark horse, I mean she’s a favorite, I would say, also a certain one. Well, yes, yes, I agree. Top. So, if we take someone who is a little lower, but could potentially win, well, I don’t know, I can’t tell you now, honestly. Well, that's a tough question. Thank you very much for the interesting conversation. Karen, now please look at the Tsanzenati grid, who we have there. I will think, I will, I will think about this issue. And by the beginning of the Open I will give my answer. When we come to her opposition, you will think about it, and we will definitely ask you. Agreed. That's it, good luck in the dance and on her opan, of course. Thanks a lot. Come on, see you later. Bye . [music] Yeah.